An Hour in the Mud

A week to go to the Saintelyon and I wanted to head out for a couple of last efforts before the last big race of the season. There’s no need to push too hard, there’s no need to go too long, and there’s no reason to aim for much more than just keeping the legs turning over comfortably and doing some final testing on gear for the race.

Today I wanted to spend an hour on my feet and get some testing in of some new clothing – well, new versions of my old clothing, but still… – and also a new hydration pack. The hydration pack is the same brand as my previous pack, Camelbak, but it is a larger pack and one that I would find sits more comfortably a little lower on my back.

Anyway, a quick trip down to the Isle Barbe and back should make for a hassle free Saturday afternoon outing, right?

Sort of…

The crowds of Christmas shoppers made starting at Jacobins a little difficult so I walked down to the river to get things started. Clicking start on the Garmin, I headed in the direction of the Isle Barbe and quickly found out why there weren’t too many people alongside the river this afternoon: it was flooded and muddy.

I spent the next five kilometers running through large puddles, long muddy sections, and trying not to slip over. My shoes didn’t slip once, though, and it gave me a bit of confidence for the race next weekend. I was getting nice and dirty, though, and some of the flooded sections were above ankle height so I was testing the drainage on those same shoes, too. The verdict? All good – the Terra Kiger 3’s are a great shoe.

At the Isle Barbe I turned over the bridge, chased down a couple of the rowers who were doing some pretty slow cardio along the side of the river, and then headed back towards Lyon. I managed to keep things nice and steady and I was surprised that I was turning in consistent sub-5:00 splits. Not too bad for a Saturday afternoon, right?

Getting back into town I crossed over the bridge, dropped down onto the flooded path again, then crossed back over the river at Saint Vincent to find my way to the courthouse footbridge. As I pulled onto the bridge the 12km mark rolled over and – seeing the mass of tourists and shoppers ahead – clicked stop on the Garmin and snapped a quick photo of my muddy shoes (that’s them at the top of the post). I was done for the afternoon and I am a week out from a race I am looking forward to immensely – bring it on.